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Windows 8 - Deeper Impressions


JorgeA

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I thought that Popular Mechanics were "serious" people, and not clowns, 3/4 of what they posted as the 10 best things in 2012 either do not exist or there is no way they actually could have tested 'em, I mean, we already have the good gizmodo guys for the news and for the "Press Communncations".

Casually, the image seen here:

http://windowsteamblog.com/windows/b/bloggingwindows/archive/2012/10/04/21-days-and-counting.aspx

has obviously been printed :w00t: on the cubify printer (wirelessly), have a look at the actual cubify site:

http://cubify.com/index.aspx

And compare with the reference for the explanation for the Windows 8 NCI and logo:

I know how it is good to introduce computers and stuff in primary school, but the idea was to do it because in due time the children would have grown up with some more knowledge, not that of having all humanity revert to primary school ....

jaclaz

Edited by jaclaz
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First Acer Windows 8 PCs on sale now at HSN.com ( NeoWin 2012-10-08 )

This is kinda interesting. One retailer may have jumped the gun and put some Windows 8 computers for sale online. HSN ( aka the Home Shopping Network ) has 5 of them listed on this page, still listed as of this writing. Since it will probably be scrubbed, I nicked the pertinent info ...

dQvKm.jpg

I don't know about anyone else, but there isn't a thing there that strikes me as a good deal at all. 15" Laptop with i3 for $700 or 15" Laptop with i5 for $1000. WTF! Scroll up a few posts to see a 17" with i7 for $700. Jeez.

I'll be the first to admit that we have no way of distinguishing the Microsoft Tax from the HSN Tax. But having said that, aren't we lucky they removed the DVD MPEG2 Decoders to in an effort to save us money? :lol: Thanks Team B&S!

EDIT: yep, Microsoft got to them. See post # 1109 below.

Edited by CharlotteTheHarlot
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Windows 8 Pro price listed at $188 through Volume Licensing ( NeoWin 2012-10-07 )

Sorry to repeat myself but aren't we lucky they removed the DVD MPEG2 Decoders to in an effort to save us money? :lol: Thanks Team B&S! Nice little dust-up in comments over there. All it takes someone to say: "not even free..." to get the fanboys all butt-hurt. :lol:

One of the interesting things to watch unfold in the Windows 8 saga has been how Microsoft roped in Nokia as one of their flagships. They were in a bit of trouble prior to signing onto to this likely trainwreck, and many speculated Microsoft will just swallow up the company eventually ( MicroNokia has a bit of a ring to it ). Over at NeoWin they have very high hopes for Nokia and their Lumias since they must understand that an epic failure here will be a VERY bad sign for Windows 8. Up in Redmond, WP8 must certainly be considered a linchpin in their modern plan for world domination. What Microsoft has done thus far in the phone market has been nothing short of embarrassing, as a NeoWin article from October 3 drives home: ComScore: Microsoft's US mobile phone market share has dropped.

For MicroNokia, early indications and word on the street has not been good at all. These are the danger ahead articles over at Fanboy Central just in the past month ...

Nokia stock down 15% following Windows Phone announcements ( NeoWin 2012-09-05 )

Nokia apologizes for misleading Lumia PureView video ( NeoWin 2012-09-06 )

Nokia CEO: "No indications" Microsoft is making its own phone ( NeoWin 2012-10-02 )

Nokia confirms sell off Finland HQ buildings [update] ( NeoWin 2012-10-03 )

Major bank downgrades Nokia again, recommends break-up and sell-off ( NeoWin 2012-10-04 )

Nokia's VP of Product Marketing departs, investors dissapointed with 920 announcement ( NeoWin 2012-10-07 )

AT&T Lumias get reduced battery life estimates ( NeoWin 2012-10-07 )

I should point out that I personally have nothing against Nokia at all and would welcome more competition in all the tech markets. The 920 looks kinda nice except for the Metro GUI. But all the glamor shots have been of the same blind-man themed GUI with yellow tiles and white icons and text. It's as if they want to fail! This photo still exists at the website ...

920-spec-front-png.png

Good luck with that. Not really.

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First Acer Windows 8 PCs on sale now at HSN.com ( NeoWin 2012-10-08 )

[...]

I don't know about anyone else, but there isn't a thing there that strikes me as a good deal at all. 15" Laptop with i3 for $700 or 15" Laptop with i5 for $1000. WTF! Scroll up a few posts to see a 17" with i7 for $700. Jeez.

I'll be the first to admit that we have no way of distinguishing the Microsoft Tax from the HSN Tax. But having said that, aren't we lucky they removed the DVD MPEG2 Decoders to in an effort to save us money? :lol: Thanks Team B&S!

If the laptops feature touch screens, we also have to factor in the cost of that technology. So... extra $$$ (possibly) shelled out for the opportunity to keep your arm constantly extended in ergonomically dubious ways.

--JorgeA

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MSFT is insane. They really think they sell 400 million Windows8 devices until July 1st 2013:

Microsoft: 400 Million+ Windows 8 Devices in 9 Months

http://www.winsupersite.com/article/paul-thurrotts-wininfo/microsoft-400-million-windows-8-devices-9-months-100000-apps-90-days-144446

As for Windows 8 and its ARM-based brother, Windows RT, Lorizio says the systems will sell much more quickly than its PC-based predecessor, Windows 7. “When Windows 8 goes live on October 26, the [size of the market] is [over] 1 billion consumers. Our goal … is conservatively over 400 million units in the marketplace by July 1.”

:lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

Which drugs do the Managers at MSFT consume to have such unrealistic expectations?

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For MicroNokia, early indications and word on the street has not been good at all. These are the danger ahead articles over at Fanboy Central just in the past month ...

Great roundup of articles, thanks!

One WOULD think that if the market thought Win8 were going to be such a winner, Nokia's stock price wouldn't be dropping.

Back in the spring I did some research and noticed that, several weeks prior to the GA of Windows 7 and even Vista, there was a significant bump in the price of MSFT. But here we are, barely half a month from the official release of Windows 8, and the stock hasn't budged. I'll have to go back and see how long before GA those bumps occurred; memory suggests it was about 4-6 weeks.

--JorgeA

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As for Windows 8 and its ARM-based brother, Windows RT, Lorizio says the systems will sell much more quickly than its PC-based predecessor, Windows 7. “When Windows 8 goes live on October 26, the [size of the market] is [over] 1 billion consumers. Our goal … is conservatively over 400 million units in the marketplace by July 1.”

And they say this is a conservative estimate?? Sounds like they seriously need some outdoor time, as there's something funny in the air inside MS HQ.

The 400 million figure must include not only "real computers," but also tablets and phones. Still, the forecast sounds wildly optimistic.

It’s about providing the same experiences across all devices in the Microsoft family—not just across the PC, but across mobile, across Xbox, and across the phone. And third, we’re going to have beautiful, relevant, and personal ads. So all of the ads are going to be integrated; they’re not going to be disruptive to the user experience, but beautiful, relevant, and useful.

They really don't get it that a phone is not a PC. :rolleyes: I don't want my phone to work like a PC, much less do I want my PC to work like a phone.

And, where exactly are these "personal ads" going to appear -- directly on the Metro start screen? Can you think of a faster way to drive people AWAY from your OS, than by making it a vehicle for even more (and more intrusive) advertising?

--JorgeA

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And they say this is a conservative estimate?? Sounds like they seriously need some outdoor time, as there's something funny in the air inside MS HQ.

yeah :lol: That the Design Team consumes LSD is obvious because of the ugly colors of the metro fullscreen thing and the gray Explorer after the "trip" is over and the depression starts.

But what is he consuming? We should start a poll "Which drugs do the "Destroying Windows Team" consume during their task of damaging Windows?

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Well, the good news (for them) are that the given link does NOT prove:

http://www.winsupersite.com/article/paul-thurrotts-wininfo/microsoft-400-million-windows-8-devices-9-months-100000-apps-90-days-144446

Anyone expecting Microsoft to take an artificially conservative approach to Windows 8 market acceptance is going to find this news interesting: A senior Microsoft executive said over the weekend that the software giant will see much better than expected success with Windows 8, thanks to its new “pivot” on consumers.

that they use drugs on working hours. :whistle:

We have years of medical studies on the effect of drugs so it is easy to find out which is which, and it doesn't sound like LSD (which seems a lot ike the one used by the design team :thumbup ), but this one sounds more like peyote :whistle: :

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peyote

As a comparation, it took Windows 7 :

http://techcrunch.com/2011/09/13/microsoft-sold-450-million-copies-of-windows-7/

23 months to sell 450 million copies, so if the trend (and it doesn't seem to me like the world economical situation is the same) remains the same (and doing an unfair average as initially Windows 7 didn't start that fast) 450/23*9=~176 millions

This would leave 450-176=274 millions of the sales relating to either the Surface or to the Nokia phones. (please read to something that doesn't yet exist and to something that doesn't sell)

jaclaz

Edited by jaclaz
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If the laptops feature touch screens, we also have to factor in the cost of that technology. So... extra $$$ (possibly) shelled out for the opportunity to keep your arm constantly extended in ergonomically dubious ways.

Yeah, but a big "if" I would say. Disregarding the first photo ( doesn't even specify the screen size ) the laptops look like they have trackpads built in, but I guess we cannot rule out trackpad + touchscreen. But that last AIO PC specifically says "touchscreen" so I would assume that HSN is counting on that as a selling point and would necessarily include that in the laptop descriptions. UPDATE: I missed the "touchscreen" spec on the 3rd laptop, it is there obviously. It is a dual configuration. That's probably the only acceptable design for a laptop IMHO.

My gut tells me they are simply existing Acer designs for Windows 7 laptops with Windows 8 shoehorned in.

The deals there pretty much suck based solely on specs, but considering Acer has been pulling up the rear on overall quality and satisfaction for the past decade, the two Acer deals there really REALLY suck. Buying something off that page as it stands should qualify the sucker a nomination for a Darwin award.

EDIT: mistake

Edited by CharlotteTheHarlot
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We have years of medical studies on the effect of drugs so it is easy to find out which is which, and it doesn't sound like LSD (which seems a lot ike the one used by the design team :thumbup ), but this one sounds more like peyote :whistle: :

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peyote

:lol:

Speaking of the influence of drugs, do the Metro Start Menu backgrounds...

computers-microsoft_00366384.png

win8spacebabies_640_large_verge_medium_landscape.jpg

...remind you of 1960s psychedelic art:

work-2997619-3-flat550x550075f-psychedelic-grunge-frac.jpg297543492_c98b122557.jpg

1208353665L232hI.jpg

--JorgeA

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What do you think?

Windows 8 is not about desktop market share (playing down expectations, just in case)

In the end, the tablet market will decide Windows 8's success or failure, not desktop market or the operating system's pre-launch performance. For Microsoft, it is less of a gamble than many journalists and analysts seem to think it will be.

We'll soon see how many thousands of Microsoft fanatics, eager to be parted from their money, will camp out overnight for the release of Windows 8 and Surface and other Win8 tablets...

--JorgeA

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Well that didn't take long now, did it?

Microsoft has rained on HSN's Windows 8 sales parade ( NeoWin 2012-10- 08 )

Home Shopping Network Starts Selling Windows 8 PCs Early ( Tom's Hardware 2012-10- 08 )

HSN.com Mistakenly Starts Selling Windows 8 PCs Early ( PC Magazine 2012-10- 08 )

First Windows 8 PCs appear early, crapware included ( ZDNet: Ed Bott 2012-10- 07 ) *** Original Source ***

( Credit for this story goes to Ed Bott at ZDNet, a detail I missed early this morning when it broke. ) The original HSN page now helpfully says: We were unable to find an item that matched your current selections.. :lol:

"Unfortunately, HSN made this offer without the support or authorization of Microsoft.

Microsoft and major retailers are getting ready for general availability of Windows 8 devices on 10/26 and not prior to that date. Once Microsoft learned of the HSN promotion, we contacted them and asked that they discontinue the on-air and online offer since it is not yet 10/26, the date that marks the official availability of Windows 8." --- Microsoft

Another pricing revealed ...

Lenovo ThinkPad Tablet 2 to start at $629 ( TechRadar 2012-10- 08 )

Lenovo ThinkPad Tablet 2 pricing revealed ( NeoWin 2012-10- 08 )

"A Lenovo spokesperson has confirmed to TechRadar that the tablet will start at $629 (UK£392, AU$612). That price does not include the keyboard/dock, which the spokesperson said will be available "as an option.""

Not much hard info though. It is a Windows 8 Tablet, and only the tablet. From what I can see it is cannot be the RT retard edition since it is an Intel Atom ( Clover Trail ), so let's really mess things up by calling it WoA - Windows on Atom! :lol: Seriously though, $629 at the minimum? The obvious conclusion to me is that all we can expect from the Windows 8 and Metro iteration is higher prices for less functionality, with strong emphasis on LESS. Microsoft has become Apple. MicroApple. Thanks a lot guys. And the desktop will become the last bastion of value for the discerning consumer. All the rest deserve their Darwin awards.

Finally, I would be embarrassingly remiss to not mention this:

Weird But Fun Windows 8 App: Iron Maiden Fan ( NeoWin 2012-10- 08 )

I had nothing to do with it. :w00t:

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An interesting use of the adverb accidentally :thumbup :

http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2410718,00.asp

The Home Shopping Network accidentally started selling Windows 8 PCs this weekend despite the fact that the new operating system will not officially be released until Oct. 26.

A better one :unsure::

27f.jpg

jaclaz

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